Notching machine



Jan. 2, 11940.

C. J. GROSS NOTCHING MACHINE Filed July 14, 1958 3 Sheets-Sheet l Jan. 2, 1 940. Q GROSS 2,185,437

NOTCHING MACHINE Filed July 14, 1938 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Jan. 2, 194G. c. J. GROSS I NOTCHING MACHINE Filed-July 14, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 /A l/E/V TUE. K f /ww 4/ M 25% 0 now be described with reference to the accom Patented Jan. 2, 1940 NOTCHING MACHINE Charles 5. Gross, Melrose, Mass,

assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Borough of Flemington, N. J., a corporation of New Jersey Application July 14, 1938, Serial No. 219,142

11 Claims.

The present invention relates to machines for reducing the substance of the margins of shoe parts by cutting out surplus material and is herein illustrated as embodied in a machine for notching the lasting margin of a shoe upper.

It is an object of the invention to provide an improved machine for simultaneously cutting a plurality of notches in the margin of a shoe upper and it is a further object of the invention to provide in such a machine means whereby the operator may readily locate the work so as to cause the cutters to operate at determinate points in the margin of the work.

With the above objects in. view, a feature of the invention consists in the provision in a machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of a shoe upper of a plurality of notch ing cutters each of which comprises a pair of shear members one of which is fixed and the other movable, said fixed shear members being constructed and arranged to support the lasting margin for the notching operation, a carrier for each movable shear member, and an actuator for the movable shear members.

In accordance with another feature of the invention the cutter organization comprises a central cutter and two side cutters, individual carriers for the side cutters, and means for swinging the carriers to adjust the side cutters for operation shoe uppers of different widths.

The end portion of an upper on its last is posi tioned both lengthwise and widthwise of the last relatively to the cutters by bringing the end portion of the uppe into engagement with the fixed cutter members which have previously been adjusted to operate on such an. upper. For positioning the last and upper heightwise thereof relatively to the cutters, the machine is provided with a gage herein illustrated as a member constructed and arranged to engage an end portion of a last bottom or a sole member, for example an insole, thereon.

In accordance with a further feature of the invention the machine is provided with a plurality of holddown members which engage the work margin adjacent to the cutting points and prevent the work margin from moving with the movable cutter members as they are retracted.

These and other features of the invention wil panying drawings and will be pointed out in the appended claims.

the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying the features of the present invention. one cutter assembly and the lower portion of the machine standard being broken away and the portion of an upper and a last beingshown in section;

Fig. 2 is a detail View in side elevation, partly in section, illustrating one of the side cutter assemblies;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the head of the machine;

Fig. l is an enlarged sectional View taken substantially on the line iV-IV of Fig. l; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective View of the toe portion of an upper on a last showing the condition of the lasting margin after the machine has operated notching cutters, one or" which operates on the central portion of the lasting margin of the toe end of an upper and one pair at each side of the central cutters, said side cutters being adjustable toward and from the central cutters for operation on different sizes of uppers. Each pair of cutters comprises a male shear member l6 and a female shear member l8 constructed and arranged to cut V notches such, for example, as the notches Zll (Fig. 5) illustrated in the lasting margin of an upper [22. As illustrated in Fig. 3, each female shear member i8 has inner walls 26 which U converge forwardly to form a V corresponding to the shape'of the notch The upper surface 28 of each shear member l8 inclines downwardly and forwardly and the line where said upper surfaces and the inner walls 26 come together defines the cutting edges of the female shear members. Each of the male shear members iii comprises a block which is triangular in cross section and has a bottom face 38 which inclines downwardly and forwardly somewhat more abruptly than the top faces 28 of the shear members l8, thus affording a shearing action of the cutters which begins at theapexes of the notches formed thereby and progresses outwardly to the edge of the work.

The mechanism for operating the central cutters will now be described in detail. Referring to Fig. 1, the central female shear member i3 is mounted on a triangular forward extension 32 of the head her it securedv to a crosshead 3 5 which is secured to a vertical shaft Elli which is slidably mounted in a bearing in the head It. The crosshead 34 is held against turnin movement by engagement of parallel side walls of a notch 38 in rearward extension t of the crosshead 3 1 with. slabbed on side portions d2 of a vertical rod l l extending upwardly from a rearward extension 46 of the head it.

Referring now to the mechanism for operating !4, while the central male shear memthe side cutters, the female shear members I8 at opposite sides of the machine are each mounted on swinging carriers 48 (Fig. 4). The carrier 48 for the shear member at the right of the machine is illustrated in Fig. 2. Each member 48 has a vertical forward portion 59 from which projects rearwardly an upper arm 52 and a short lower arm 54. Each carrier 58 is mounted on a vertical shaft 56 which extends through the central portion of the arm 52 and through the end portion of the lower arm 54 and has a hearing at the right side of a crosshead 58 in the head M. Each carrier 48 has a triangular forward extension 60 on which the female cutter member is mounted. Referring to Fig. 3 the male shear members H5 at the sides of the machine are mounted on carrier members or arms 6?. secured to vertical shafts 64 slidably mounted in hearings in the forward portions of the carriers 43. The carriers 62 are generally L-shaped in plan view. For preventing turning movement of the carriers 62 relatively to the carriers 48 the rear portions of the carriers 62 are each provided with a notch 66 having parallel side walls which engage slabbed-oif portions of upward extensions 58 (Fig. 2) of the shafts 56. The side cutters are adjusted toward and from the central cutters by swinging the carriers 48 and 62 and it will be understood that the carriers 48 and 52 at each side of the machine swing as a unit and that in any adjustive position of the carriers the shear members will register accurately with each other. For simultaneously adjusting the side cutters toward and from the central cutter a horizontal right and left threaded screw 10 is arranged to extend transversely of the rear portion of the machine and has threaded engagement with swivel blocks '72 (Figs. 3 and 4) at the rear ends of the upper arm 52 of each carrier 48. For holding the screw H3 against longitudinal movement a spring-pressed plunger 75 (Fig, 2) is mounted in a socket provided in a screw l8 projecting upwardly from a rearward extension of the head M, the head of the plunger 76 being slabbed off to fit into a peripheral groove 14 in the screw it. The screw is so positioned by the plunger '16 that the side cutters are uniformly spaced from the central cutters at all times. For operating the cutters a treadle 82 (Fig. 1) is fulcrumed at 84 in the base of the machine and is connected by a link 86 to a block 88 secured to the lower portion of the shaft 36. It will be understood that the downward movement of the carriers 62 which carry the male shear members it .of the side cutters is effected by the downward movement of the crosshead 34 as the treadle is depressed, the outer portions of the crosshead being arranged to engage the upper ends of the shafts 64 to which the carriers 62 are secured. For retracting the male shear members i6, two springs 90 (Fig. 3) exert an upward pressure against the carriers 62 and a spring 92 (Fig. l) exerts an upward pressure against the crosshead 34.

For insuring the disengagement of the male shear members from the work, the machine is provided with three holddown members or stripper plates M, one of which is secured to a flat front face of the head l4 and two of which are secured to fiat faces of the swinging cutter carriers 58. Each stripper plate has its free upper portion bent downwardly into parallel relation to the upper surfaces of the adjacent female shear member. The downwardly bent portions of the stripper plates correspond generally in shape to the upper end faces of the female shear members l8 and have their central portions cut away to provide clearance for the operation of the male shear members 16.

For gaging the position of an upper on its last heightwise thereof in the machine a gage member, herein illustrated as a rod 96 (Fig. 1), is clamped to an upward extension 98 of the shaft 44 and arranged to extend from the shaft 44 forwardly over the top of the machine and downwardly, the lower end portion of said rod being positioned in front of the central cutters. The rod 96 has secured to its end face a foot I00 which is constructed and arranged to engage an insole on the last bottom, for example the insole I92, illustrated in Fig. 1. The last and upper are positioned lengthwise thereof relatively to the notching cutters by bringing the toe end of the upper into engagement with the central female shear member If! and the last and upper are positioned widthwise thereof relatively to the cutters by the female shear members at opposite sides of the toe portion of the upper which are adjusted in accordance with the width of the last by the adjustment of the side cutter carriers as hereinbefore described.

It will be understood that in the operation of the illustrated machine the toe portion of the lasting margin of the upper is turned outwardly. See, for example, the outturned portion I04 of the lasting margin of the upper illustrated in Fig. 5. This outturned margin is inserted between the top faces of the female shear members and the stripper plates 94. The operator then depresses the treadle 82, simultaneously operating the cutters, thus forming three V-shaped notches in the lasting margin of the toe portion of the upper, for example the notches 20 in the lasting margin of the upper illustrated in Fig. 5.

To facilitate the removal from the female shear members of the chips removed from the lasting margin of the upper in the cutting operation said shear members are provided with openings I06 (Fig. 3) through which the chips may be removed.

Preparatory to the operation of the machine, the operator first arranges the lasting margin at the toe end of the upper to extend outwardly from the last, as shown in Fig. 5. The operator then positions the outturned margin in the spaces between the upper surfaces of the female shear members l8 and stripper plates 9 as shown in Fig. 1. If necessary, the shear members at the sides of the toe end of the shoe are now adjusted by turning the right and left threaded screw 10 to bring the female shear members at the sides of the shoe into engagement with the upper. To position the shoe for the operation of the machine, the operator presses the toe end of the shoe upwardly until the insole I02 on the last engages the foot I00 of the toe gage member (Fig. l) and with the other hand, presses the shoe forwardly bringing the toe end of the upper against the female shear members to position the toe end of the shoe both lengthwise and widthwise thereof relatively to the shear members of the machine. The operator then depresses the treadle 82 thus imparting a downward movement to the crosshead 34 which carries the central male shear member l6. As the crosshead moves downwardly, its extremities engage the carriers 62 (Fig. 3) in which are mounted the male shear members at the sides of the machine and the three male shear members move downward simultaneously and out three notches in the outturned margin of the toe portion of the upper as shown at 20 in Fig. 5. The operator then lifts his foot 75 from the treadle 82 and the springs 92 and return the crosshead 3 and the carriers 52 respectively to their elevated or rest positions. During the return movement of the male shear members the stripper plates 94 hold the outturned portion of the lasting margin against upward movement and insure the disengagement of the male shear members from the lasting margin.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

l. A machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of a shoe upper having in combination a plurality of notching cutters each of which c prises a pair of shear members one or which fixed and the other movable, said fixed shear mem being constructed and arto support the lasting margin for the notching operation, a carrier for each movable shear member, and an actuator for the movable shear members.

2. A machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of an end portion of an upper on a last having in combination a central cutter which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, side cutters each of which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a carrier for the movable shear member of the central cutter, carriers for the side cutters, and means for swinging the lastmentioned carriers to adjust the side cutters for operation on shoe uppers of different widths.

3. A machine for notching the lasting margin of an end portion of an upper on a last having in combination a central cutter which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, side cutters each of which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a carrier for the movable shear member of the central cutter, carriers for the side cutters, means for swinging the last-mentioned carriers to adjust the side cutters for operation on shoe uppers of different widths, and an actuator for simultaneously operating the movable shear members.

4. A machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of a shoe upper on a last having in combination a central cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a side cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a carrier on which both shear members of the side cutter are mounted for adjustive movement toward and away from the central cutter, and means for adjusting the side cutter.

5. A machine for notching the lasting margin of a shoe upper on a last having in combination a central cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a side cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a carrier on which both shear members of the side cutter are mounted for adjustive movement toward and away from the central cutter, means for adjusting the side outter, and a common actuator for the movable shear members.

6. A machine for notching the lasting margin of a shoe upper comprising a central cutter and a pair of side cutters, each of the cutters comprising a pair of shear members, a pair of carriers for the side cutters, an adjuster for simultaneously adjusting the side cutters from and toward the central cutter, and a common actuator for the cutters.

'7. A machine for notching the margin of an end portion of a shoe upper on a last having in combination a central cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, and a pair of side cutters each of which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, said side cutters being adjustable toward and from the central cutter, the direction of such adjnstive movement being substantially perpendicular to the cutting stroke, said fixed shear members being constructed and arranged to provide a gage for positioning a shoe upper on a last both lengthwise and widthwise of the last relatively to the cutters.

8. A machine for notching the margin in an end portion of a shoe upper on a last having in combination a central cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a pair of side cutters each of which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, said side cutters being adjustable toward and from the central cutter, the direction of such adjustive movement being substantially perpendicular to the cutting stroke, said fixed shear members being constructed and arranged to pro vide a gage for positioning a shoe upper on a last both lengthwise and Widthwise of the last relatively to the cutters, and a gage for positioning the last and upper heightwise thereof relatively to the cutters.

9. A machine for notching the margin of an end portion of a shoe upper on a last having in combination a central cutter comprising a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, a pair of side cutters each of which comprises a fixed shear member and a movable shear member, said side cutters being adjustable toward and from the central cutter, said fixed shear members being constructed and arranged to provide a gage for positioning a shoe upper on a last both lengthwise and Widthwise of the last relatively to the cutters, a gage for positioning the last and upper heightwise thereof relatively to the cutters, and a common actuator for the movable shear members.

10. A machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of an upper having in combination a plurality of notching cutters each of which comprises a pair of shear members one of which is fixed and the other movable, a plurality of holddown members constructed and arranged to engage the lasting margin adjacent to the cutting points during the retraction of the movable shear members, and an actuator for simultaneously operating the movable shear members.

11. A machine for cutting surplus material from the lasting margin of an upper having in combination a plurality of notching cutters each of which comprises a pair of shear members one of which is fixed and the other movable, a plurality of holddown members secured to the fixed shear members and constructed and arranged to engage the lasting margin adjacent to the cutting points during the retraction of the movable shear members, and an actuator for simultaneously operating the movable shear members.

CHARLES J. GROSS. 

